


a change of plans.

by miscellaneousmarvel



Category: The Umbrella Academy (TV)
Genre: (some vague descriptions of reginald being a dick to his kids), Drinking, Implied/Referenced Abuse, Light Angst, Other, Sibling!Reader, Slow Burn, Swearing, diego is a himbo, im still learning how to use ao3 bare with me, reader is the biological sibling of klaus
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-22
Updated: 2020-09-22
Packaged: 2021-03-08 04:01:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,795
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26599480
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/miscellaneousmarvel/pseuds/miscellaneousmarvel
Summary: diego is wary of klaus' new friend.
Relationships: Diego Hargreeves & Grace Hargreeves, Diego Hargreeves & Klaus Hargreeves, Diego Hargreeves/Reader, Klaus Hargreeves & Reader
Kudos: 28





	a change of plans.

**Author's Note:**

> read it on tumblr- https://miscellaneous-marvell.tumblr.com/post/629883858534432768/a-change-of-plans
> 
> request from @misspygmypie on tumblr: Oh yay, I'm so happy you write for TUA ❤ I'd love to request something: Klaus found his real/biological family by accident and has a sister (sibling), they instantly connect and spend a lot of time with each other. That's how Diego meets them and falls for them and they're just like this inseparable trio. I looove Diego and Klaus, they're such a fun pair lol ❤ thank you, if you decide you write this 😊

diego walked through the halls of the academy, holding a thick hardback book in his hands that he had taken from his father’s old bookshelf. grace passed him as he walked, and he stopped for just a quick second to talk to her. 

“headed back home so soon, diego?” his mother asked with a smile, her hand resting on his forearm. she gave it a gentle and reassuring squeeze. diego wasn’t actually leaving any sooner than he usually did-- or later, for that matter-- but grace wouldn’t necessarily mind if her son were to stay just a bit longer to talk more to her. 

“yeah mom,” diego smiled back at her, and then nibbling at his bottom lip as he thought. he leaned in to kiss her cheek, and she responded by turning it towards him and smiling even wider when he landed his peck. “it’s getting late,” he finally said, “i’m always home at around ten.”

grace’s smile faltered a little, but she just gave diego’s forearm another squeeze before walking off. 

____________________________________

diego had a schedule. a system. a cycle. a pattern. his days were mostly the same-- it comforted him to always know what to expect, to always have control. the apocalypse had been stopped, the chaos was over-- diego didn’t want anything to take his control away like that again. so he stuck to the schedule. 

he would work and train all day. he hardly had free time, and he liked it that way-- no room for something unexpected. he always visited the academy for about an hour before he considered his day done, too-- he would chat with whoever was around, most of the time luther or grace, he would tuck in five when he was sure he was asleep, then kiss his mom goodnight before going home. everything was predictable. dull, for lack of a better term-- his life was a colorless film, and diego was fine with that. he liked the aesthetic. 

you were not according to the plan. 

you happened on a random night-- a tuesday. 

klaus was usually in and out-- diego never planned on seeing his brother. and when he did the interactions were quick. tonight... wasn’t. 

klaus asked diego to give him a ride. “just a quick favor! i’ll owe you!” 

“i don’t have time, klaus.” diego responded. he didn’t want favors for klaus to become a regular thing-- he didn’t want to have to change his schedule for daily “favors,” especially when he knew his brother would never return them. 

but somehow, beyond diego, klaus ended up in the backseat of his car, yelling at diego to turn left into the middle of nowhere. 

“where the hell am i taking you?” diego snapped, his grip on the steering wheel tightening as the car jostled on top of the gravel road. the rain that night made the dust a thick paste, and diego cringed thinking of the aftermath of the mud that would be left on his car. 

“just to visit an old friend of mine,” klaus responded, rolling down his window to lean out of it. klaus read the addresses as they passed by, slowly counting up until…

“diego! pull in there!” 

gasping a bit, diego slammed on his break and just barely slowed down enough to turn into the driveway klaus had pointed to. before the car was even fully parked, klaus yelled a quick thanks and bounced out of the car and to the front door. 

diego let out a sigh of relief and put the car in reverse, before seeing his brother moving the welcoming mat and potted plants around. diego stopped the car once again. 

“klaus, what the hell are you doing?” diego yelled, parking and finally climbing out of the vehicle to confront his brother. his hair immediately became soaked and dripped rainwater on the shoulders of his jacket and onto his nose, but he ignored it for the time being. 

“i’m, uh, looking for a spare key,” klaus explained as he laid the welcome mat back down, putting his hands on his hips and looking at diego with a puzzled expression. “but, i can’t seem to find one.”

“are you telling me i drove you to some neighborhood in the middle of nowhere, brought you to a random house in the pouring rain, you don’t even have a way in?”  
“well, i didn’t say any of that. but yes.” 

“klaus, tell me where the hell we are!” diego yelled, looking around the yard around him-- freshly mowed, plants that had been well cared for, it was hard to imagine klaus being associated with a place like this. “this better not be some plug’s place,” he added with a growl.

“it’s not. trust me!” klaus added when diego gave him a doubtful side-eye. with a sigh, klaus stepped forward, curling his index finger and tapping five times on the door with his knuckle. 

a few seconds later, the click of the door being unlocked could be heard, followed by two taps from the other side. klaus turned to diego, smirking at him smugly and poking him teasingly on the arm “see? what did i tell you, little bro?” 

diego grumbled and swatted klaus’ hands away, making his brother chuckle before stepping back to the door, turning the rusted knob, and pushing it open with a tarnished whine. before it was even fully opened, klaus squeezed through and welcomed himself into the house. 

diego followed him, stepping in more cautiously and checking his surroundings. he reached back and pulled the door back into its place, but made sure to leave it open just a crack. just in case, he assured himself, before moving forward and through the home, following the rumbles of klaus’ voice and the shake of his laughter. 

the plush, carpeted floors beneath his feet changed into wooden slabs, and the smell of hot food filled the air. there klaus stood, with a glass of wine in one hand and the other slumped over the shoulder of a person he couldn’t recognize. 

the laughing died down and klaus followed diego’s gaze to you. you, standing there opposite diego diego, a stranger in your house, returning the piercing glare he had thrown at you like it was the other way around. 

“oh shit, i’m sorry,” klaus muttered, unraveling his arm from around you and instead of using it to gesture lazily towards diego. “this is diego, my brother.” 

diego stiffly waved, though you took notice to the way he pulled a small blade out of his pocket and fiddled with it in his hand-- like the most dangerous nervous tick. 

“...number two,” klaus addressed his brother by his number, causing the other man to pry his gaze from you and to him, clenching his jaw in obvious annoyance. 

“meet y/n, my sibling.” klaus finished, catching the tip of your chin between his fingers and shaking your head around. you forced a grin. 

“it’s nice to meet you, diego. i’ve heard a lot about you.”

this is why diego hated doing favors for klaus. 

he left then, leaving nothing but the impression of his icy hot stare on your skull, damp footprints on your carpet, and a puddle on your kitchen floor. 

____________________________________

klaus was unpredictable, he kept diego guessing and diego hated it. you, after appearing into diego’s life out of seemingly nowhere, were the same way. unpredicted, appearing out of the blue. he could see your resemblance. 

however, as much as he tried to stop them, “favors” with klaus became a daily thing. and so did ignoring the way you waved at him from your front door. he would sit in his car with crossed arms and a “resting-grump” face, only staying long enough to make sure klaus got in okay. 

you were too perfect. too nice, too attentive, too willing to put up with the chaos that was his baby brother klaus. the thing he hated the most was, that despite the guessing game you kept him on-- you slipped oh-so-easily into his routine. 

diego found himself starting the ignition in his car before he’d even see klaus-- and klaus would happily bounce to the vehicle and climb into the passenger seat with a giddy smile. at least klaus was always excited to see you. 

there was a specific night where diego pulled into your driveway. it was pouring rain like the first time he had met you-- though he had to admit that “met” was a loose term, he was introduced to you and had left the second he learned who you were. thunder cracked loud enough to vibrate him down to his core, and when he saw you coming out to the car with a small pink umbrella he felt a distant fluttering feeling in the same place. 

you invited him inside. when diego opened his mouth to deny the offer, another boom of thunder replaced his words. so, hesitantly, he came inside. 

the house was just as quaint as he remembered. diego kicked off his wet boots this time-- he figured that if he tracked mud through your house he’d be leaving just as quickly as he had last time. the carpets were soft and plush, just as he remembered. a nice contrast to the hardwood and pavement flooring he lived and grew up in. diego couldn’t stop the looming thought of ‘i could get used to a place like this.’  
diego walked the vaguely familiar path to your kitchen, where a stereo played a song from a station he had never listened to and klaus swayed in the middle of the room with an unlit cigarette dangling from his mouth. there was a gentle tug at the corner of diego’s mouth that he fought off as he watched his brother dance like a complete fool. 

you walked up to diego, a short, but full, glass of wine in your hand as you reached out to offer it to him. 

diego put his hand up in a slightly defensive manner. “i have to drive,” he reminded you.

you just shrugged. “not for a while.”

as though it had been waiting for its cue, a flash filled the room, followed shortly back a loud rumble. behind you, klaus jumped out of his groove and yelped a bit at the display. 

diego took the glass from your hand and fought back a smile when you had flashed one at him. 

as the night went on, diego decided that it wouldn’t be so bad to let this slip into his routine. sipping wine, listening to corny songs from the radio, watching his brother humiliate himself, talking to you.  
the storm never let up that night-- and it was around midnight when you had walked up to diego to quietly ask him if he would be comfortable staying the night. something about your wording made him think that you wouldn’t even give him the chance the go out and drive in the rain. so diego decided to stay. 

at one a.m., klaus was the first one to fall asleep-- he had laid down in the middle of the kitchen floor with his limbed sprawled about like a starfish-- and now it was just you and diego. the two of you sat on the two different sofas you owned, watching whatever comedy central had decided to put on when half of its regular viewers were asleep. the silence between you two was even more awkward when combined with the most artificial laugh track diego had ever heard and klaus’ distant snoring. 

you broke the silence first. 

“why do you hate me?” the question cut through the air like a knife through butter. diego glanced at you, but your eyes didn’t move from the tv screen. god, this is was abrupt. 

“i don’t.” 

“yes you do,” you pressed back, still not even meeting his gaze. “you always give me a nasty glare and always drive away as quickly as possible.”

“i have places to be,” diego responded, fiddling his fingers together, slight irritation present in his voice. 

“but you don’t tonight?”

diego stayed silent. 

“if you’re so eager to get to where you need to be, how come the rain is what stopped you?” you press, your eyes still not prying from the television. 

“i…” diego trailed off, looking down at his twiddling thumbs and pulling his bottom lip into his mouth as he thought. “why do you care so much?” he finally managed to look back up at you, thinking his comeback had him won. 

“i don’t, but klaus does.” 

diego wasn’t winning. you were intense, you had him grasping at straws without even looking at him. he felt another flutter in his abdomen. ‘not now.’  
“i guess i just… don’t really trust you.” 

“why not?”

“it just never made sense to me,” he finally began to gain confidence in his words. “we had gone thirty years with just the seven of us. i don’t think i ever even thought of the possibility of an outside family. but now reginald hargreeves, an eccentric millionaire, is dead, and one of his sons just happens to have an extended family member reach out?”

“diego,” you finally look away from the screen, your gaze burning into his. “klaus reached out to me.”  
silence. you continued to stare. 

“oh.” he finally said. shit.  
you looked back at the tv again. the show changed, but the laugh track remained the same. diego looked at the tv as well, deciding that pretending you weren’t there was better than gazing slack-jawed at your profile as you ignored him. 

about twenty minutes had passed when you broke the silence again. 

“what was it like?” 

diego looked at you once again, surprised when he was able to meet your gaze immediately. “what?”

“growing up with klaus, i mean,” you elaborated, now turning your whole body to face him. “being apart of the umbrella academy,” you added cautiously when diego didn’t respond. 

“um, it was, uh…” diego trailed off as he debated just how honest he should be. “...it sucked.” he finally finished. 

you chuckled a bit, and diego didn’t bother to fight off the small smile the sound caused. 

“and growing up with klaus was even worse,” he added jokingly, making you break out into an actual laugh. 

“i can only imagine,” you responded as you laughed, glancing down at the floor and smiling as you recalled when you had first met klaus. “he’s been a handful in just the year i’ve known him.”

“he’s always been that way. the only time he had ever shut up was when he had to get his jaw wired shut.”

“how’d he manage that?” you asked with a giggle. 

“tripped wearing our mom’s high heels.” 

“sounds like something he’d do.” 

the two of you continued like that almost all night-- telling each other stories about your shared “baby” brother, telling each other about your childhoods. diego told you about how much it used to bother him that luther was his dad’s favorite, how luther had the biggest room and diego used to sleep in it when luther was gone just because he knew luther would never know. you began to understand why diego came off as an absolute asshole. 

you told him about your mother-- klaus’ biological one. how she was always distant, how she moved you from place to place, and never bothered to give you so much as a heads up before she fled the second state in a year. you told him how you had no _clue_ your mother had been one of the forty-three until after you had met klaus. diego understood why you were so intense. and he started to like it even more, too. 

maybe he didn’t mind the way you slipped into his routine that much, after all. 

____________________________________

diego sat at the dining room table, waiting for the sizzling of a freshly cracked egg to die down before he started to speak again. 

“they’re real nice, mom,” he told his mother, grabbing the french press that had been sitting on the table and topping off his small cup of coffee once again. “they practically raised themself, y’know. which i think is why they’re so good at protecting klaus.” 

grace turned away from the stovetop for a moment to smile at diego. “they sound lovely.”

diego shrugged a bit, lowering his head as he smiled in a half-assed effort to hide it. he twiddled with one of his small throwing knives. “yeah, they are.” 

grace’s smile grew bigger as she grabbed a spatula, flipping the egg she had cracked. “they sound like a good change of pace for you, diego.” 

diego glanced up at her again. 

“a well-needed change of plans.”


End file.
